Jenny’s Journal: Maui April 8th-11th

April 8th

Well, we made it!
It feels good (really good) to be here and have that channel behind us. We woke up at 3:30AM and drove up to Waikoloa to meet the crew, loaded up the trucks and drove up with Jack Gillen to meet the boat at the harbor. It took longer than expected to load the boats (we have SO much gear) and so we were behind schedule to leave but it all worked out.

Jack prayed for us before we left. It was nice to have him there. He always has such good energy. The funny thing about the crossing was how calm I felt. I didn’t feel nervous or afraid like I thought I might. It was like deep down I knew that everything would be ok. And it was. It was the perfect day to cross.

Within minutes of letting go of our offerings we saw a whale breaching in the distance. It continued to break and then went into a tail slapping routine. I didn’t think we would actually get close to it but within 10 minutes we were a couple hundred yards away and my line was taking me directly to the whale. As I approached it continued to tail slap and then suddenly disappeared. I scanned the water expecting to see it nearby when Morgan shouted that it was under her board. Sure enough I saw it pop up right next to her and then swim right up to our escort boat, tail slap once more and disappear. Looking back it was pretty cool that he popped up and gave us a show as we started out.

The channel itself was mellow in comparison to what it can be like. We really lucked out – that is all I kept thinking. I remember stopping myself from having that thought too often in case I jinxed us. A few times I had to ask the captain if we really were in the channel or still in the shadow of the Big Island because of how surprised I was by the conditions. Not that I minded – it was much better for us to have crossed the way it was than anything else.

Overall, I didn’t find that channel to be difficult for me. I say that with the utmost respect of that and any channel – I know we were fortunate to be blessed with calm conditions. Mentally, I was prepared for the crossing and expected the worst…I think that helped. Physically, I felt great for the majority of the paddle. My arms started to ache at hr 6 and 7 but nothing that I couldn’t handle. My pinkie nail hurt toward the end and my hands ached but after stretching and mixing up my stroke, it felt better.

It took 9hrs, a few more hours than I would have liked but we made it and that is what matters. The hardest part was about 13-15 miles out from Maui. For awhile, it didn’t seem like Maui got any closer. It took 2-3 hrs of staring at the same house and mountainside before I finally saw a change. I kept telling myself “only 2 more hours” and when those 2 were up, I’d tell myself again, “only 2 more hours”. I never lost focus, I tried to maintain a positive mindset throughout. There was one moment when in the pit of my stomach I feared that were drifting south and simply bypassing Maui without actually getting closer to land but that feeling didn’t last long. It is important to stay positive. The mind is a powerful thing.

When we first started paddling one of our captains, Mike Nakachi, said to me “look back and check out Mauna Kea, the valleys, the waterfalls… take it all in. Enjoy the moment – this is why you’re doing this!”

Too often we forget the moment. I stopped, looked back and it was beautiful.

On April 7th, 2010, Morgan and I became the first women to stand-up paddle across the Alenuihaha channel.
Pretty cool

Thanks to Mike, Nue & Earl our captains for the trip!!

April 9th

Rest day today. Tomorrow we paddle to Molokin crater for our 2nd channel crossing. Unfortunately, we will not be able to paddle the entire channel to Kahoolawe because we were not given access to the island but we’re making the most of it.

Early morning snorkeling and free diving near Maken landing. Saw reef sharks, turtles and found some neat “swim-throughs” and underwater arches. Drove up to Haleakala for sunset but it was overcast and drizzly so we didn’t get to see much but it was still really beautiful.. and COLD! I’m glad we went.

April 10th

Maui – Molokini

This morning we paddled from Makena landing on Maui to and around Molokini crater. It was a beautiful morning and it didn’t take long to paddle over. We were amazed by how beautiful the crater is…the red cliffs, carved out from wind and waves. It reminded me of the Grand Canyon – or what I imagine the Grand Canyon looks like.

Once inside the crater we went snorkeling. The visibility was amazing. There were fish everywhere. We stayed for an hour and then headed back to shore.

Another fun day. I can’t believe how quickly time is going by. I’m excited about camping on Lanai and seeing Shipwreck beach. Up next, Maui – Lanai (10+miles) then back to Maui.

April 11th

Well, we didn’t get out for much of an adventure but we did drive up the coast toward Lahaina to check the conditions and our course for Lanai. It was a spectacular day. We could see the valleys on Molokai and Lanai. Everything was so clear because of the strong winds – which is why we drove up in the first place – we wanted to see how the winds were going to affect our paddle. I heard that the North winds could make our paddle more difficult because it would be side on. I was nervous that we would have to change our plans or delay our paddle so we decided to drive up the coast and check things out for ourselves. The winds were strong but we decided that if we left farther North we would be fine. It could even be fun! Happy that we didn’t have to drastically change our plans we headed back to Kihei to pack our things.

Looking forward to Lanai – excited to check out a new island and explore.

Can’t believe this is all really happening – so much planning but we did it!